UPDATE: Wade McMullen from the Kennedy Center tweeted me to say that the State Department denies that Obama threatened sanctions.On this clip, we learn that sanctions may be in store for Uganda if Parliament passes the anti-gay bill.Committee chair Stephen Tashobya is interviewed in this clip. Tashobya has at various times said the bill would not emerge from his committee. However, he would be a pivotal figure in the passage of the bill since his committee must submit a … [Read more...]

So says the Monitor.The Speaker of Parliament has directed the Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Committee to present the Anti-Homosexuality Bill 2011 on the floor of Parliament.The committee chairperson, Mr Stephen Tashobya, passed on Ms Rebecca Kadaga’s directive to committee members yesterday as he summoned them to attend next week’s session in person “to have the Bill concluded”.In her November 13 letter, the Speaker advised Mr Tashobya to be mindful of what she said was the high de … [Read more...]

Normally a "no comment" response is not very newsworthy, but in this case the reply might signal a more serious effort to pass the Anti-Homosexuality Bill over the next several days.Today, I spoke briefly with Legal and Parliamentary Affairs committee chair Stephen Tashobya who declined to comment on my questions about his committees report on the anti-gay bill. When asked other questions about the legislation, he said he was unable to comment in any way on the Anti-Homosexuality … [Read more...]

Stephen Tashobya, chair of the Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Committee of the Ugandan Parliament, told me yesterday that he had not scheduled consideration for the Anti-Homosexuality Bill. Asked if his committee would write a new report, or stick with the report issued during the last Parliament, Tashobya declined to say. "The committee will have a say on that and we will meet soon to decide how to proceed with all of the bills returned to the committee," Tashobya explained.When asked if … [Read more...]

Yesterday, I reported that the Parliament of Uganda voted to return unfinished bills from the Eighth Session to business in the current session. One of those bills specifically referenced was the Anti-Homosexuality Bill.This morning I spoke with Parliament Spokeswoman, Helen Kawesa, who told me that no date had been set for debate on the anti-gay measure. "The Business Committee will meet to decide what bills are considered. Then they will be listed on the daily Order Paper," Kawesa … [Read more...]

Scroll to the bottom for updates.In contrast to reports attributed to the BBC (at 14:20) that the Anti-Homosexuality Bill will soon be taken up by Uganda's new Parliament, a parliamentary spokeswoman denied today that any action has been considered. When asked about the BBC report that the Ninth Parliament had inherited three bills, including the anti-gay bill, parliamentary spokewoman, Helen Kawesa said, "I don't know where that news is coming from. No one has said anything here about it. … [Read more...]

On Saturday, David Bahati called up his new best friend Melanie Nathan and told her that the Anti-Homosexuality Bill would be heard before the end of the 8th Parliament in May.Today I immediately mentioned the confusion surrounding the status of the AHB in this eighth parliament. I asked Mr. Bahati if it was true that the Bill has been scrapped and he asserted – “absolutely not” and that it is a matter still in the hands of the Parliament and that it can be passed at anytime.The best updat … [Read more...]

This morning, Stephen Tashobya, the chair of the Legal and Parliamentary Affairs committee of the Ugandan Parliament told me that the prospects for the Anti-Homosexuality Bill are still not certain. He denied saying that public hearings were planned, adding “what we said was we have that bill [the Anti-Homosexuality Bill] together with many other bills before the committee.”Tashobya added, “When I was asked about that bill, I said yes, it is among the many bills that we have and we shall … [Read more...]